Black Diamond Drops Joe Kinder

Since this article was first published, The Outdoor Journal has been in contact with the relevant parties. This is a developing story, and as such, the article was updated at 05:45 UTC on 16th May 2017.

Sasha DiGiulian, a professional climber and writer, called out fellow climber Joe Kinder on his social media bullying, mostly targeted towards her. This had been ongoing for several years and previously, Sasha had tried to address the issue offline, but Joe did not respond. Joe had a private meme account on IG, where he would post inside jokes making fun of friends. In one post, he posted an image of Sarah Sapora—a well-known public figure who focuses on wellness and self-love. Her main goal is “to show other women that they are visible, valuable, and have the ability to be the ‘hero’ in their own lives”. The now deleted meme was made at her expense. Sasha has been very vocal about body image issues and eating disorders, speaking from personal experiences she has had to overcome. This has sparked a debate on the effects of cyberbullying, eating disorders, gender inequality, and the role and responsibility of professional and influential athletes. Joe has issued an apology that has been accepted by Sasha.

On May 3, Sasha called attention to this issue on her Instagram:

To this post, Black Diamond responded: @sashadigiulian and the greater climbing tribe, thank you for bringing this issue to our attention. At BD, we have and always will support ALL women in the climbing community. From our amazing female athletes, to the women's specific gear we design, our stance has and will always be to support and value women.

Pro climber and The North Face athlete Emily Harrington responded: This is a really valuable conversation to have right now. And respect to you sasha for having the courage to bring it up under some pretty personal and hurtful circumstances. Not many of us would have the courage or know where to begin. Respect. I'm sorry it came to such a painful place though and I sincerely hope good can come from this. That everyone can be better and kinder humans as a result. Big love to you and especially to your fam right now .

Mountaineer and TNF athlete Conrad Anker responded: It takes strength to speak out. Thanks Sasha for being a beacon of positivity. May our community learn and make steps towards integrity, compassion, empathy, forgiveness and humility. Be good, be kind, be happy.

On May 4, Black Diamond Equipment dropped Joe Kinder from their team:

On May 3, Joe posted an apology:

To this, Emily Harrington responded: I've known you since I was 14 dude. You're like an older brother to me and I know your heart is big and in the right place. Insensitive jokes, hurtful actions, and mistakes happen, sometimes in public and sometimes not. We've all been on both sides of it. Sasha's decision to call you out was her way of calling attention to an important issue and dealing with the pain it caused her. Respect for that. And yea it sucks that it had to come to this but it did and here we are. Your response was well thought out and I know it was genuine (because I know you). Good conversations should and will come of this. Let's all be kinder, better, and give a little more love now.

Sasha responded: I really appreciate your apology Joe. My intention was not to publicly denounce you for an image; it was the pattern Our behavior towards others has consequences on our self-esteem and relationship with ourselves and the community. Now we are communicating publicly and privately and I Wish before we could have been speaking privately too; I did reach out. This can all be flipped around in a positive light as I see working together on a societal issue and deconstructing the negative is the way forward.

Sasha's last update came from her manager, Luke Tipple:

Her manager, Luke Tipple, sent The Outdoor Journal a statement from Sasha:

I agree that social media should not be the standard by which we solve our problems. And here, yes, after attempting private reconciliation, I stood up for myself on my platform. I respect that each person will have an opinion and vocalize it; I hope that you can respect that I have an opinion of my own as well; that is to be held accountable to your actions and to recognize the privilege that we have as professional athletes.
We have an opportunity to hold ourselves to a higher standard. And I am sorry that this comes with such repercussions.

As representatives of our community, we should not spend our extra time being adults that pick fun of other people for no reason but to laugh at them without them knowing.
I don’t stand for just passing my time climbing rock and giving nothing back to society.

And I’m sorry to some that we may forever disagree on these points.

Maybe it could have gone a different way. And it’s important to pull those things into question and think about it. That’s how we grow. That’s how we learn and that’s how we become better in the future. There are always multiple approaches to any one problem. But I chose the one I chose for a good reason. And that is, after attempts to privately reconcile the problem, I shared what was already online. If we refuse to call a bully by their name we continue to allow them the undeserved power they continue to abuse.

My actions were thought out and considered. I asked advice and picked my words carefully. And now what is done is done. This isn’t life ending. We don’t even know that’s it’s career ending. It just forces change and accountability. Joe has a lot of growing up to do; as do we all, and if he had learned these things earlier on than this would have never happened to begin with. His actions are his to own, not mine to excuse.

On May 7, La Sportiva dropped Joe Kinder from their team:

On May 14, Joe Kinder issued another apology.